Welcome to the Berkeley, Calif., of the not-too-distant future, where things aren’t going too well. No phones, no power and – gasp! – no Internet.

Yeah, “Transcendence” is another in a long line of movies that starts with the ending, then flashes back – in this case, five years earlier – to how and why it all happened. (Note to all screenwriters: Enough already. Just tell me the story; save the ending for the end.)

So, five years earlier, we meet brilliant scientist-researchers Will and Evelyn Caster (Johnny Depp and Rebecca Hall), taking a break from work by listening to some tasty Jorma Kaukonen on the turntable. (These are obviously old-school brilliant scientists.)

There’s also their best pal and co-scientist-researcher Max Waters (Paul Bettany). Not to worry, not even a hint of a clichéd love triangle can be found in this sometimes cerebral, sometimes action-packed science fiction thriller.

Will Caster is the foremost authority on artificial intelligence, and he’s making incredible advances. But there are folks out there – let’s call them the anti-technology crowd – who want him and his work stopped before it’s “too late.” And like certain factions of the far right (though specific political sides aren’t mentioned), they’ll do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. That includes killing.

The Johnny Depp character isn’t exactly taken out early on, like Janet Leigh in “Psycho,” but he sure does go through some changes. For clarity’s sake, let’s say his mind goes through some changes. He’s in bad physical shape, excellent mental shape, and his experiments in A.I. involve the Internet. The only spoiler I’ll give up is, with surreptitious help from his wife and his pal, that very special mind becomes one with the Internet.

This is where, in some quarters, the movie makes a quantum leap up the interest ladder, and in others, draws accusations of being derivative. Nitpicking fellow critics have argued that “Transcendence” borrows too much from, among other films, “Robocop,” “Blade Runner,” “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

To them I say, shut up and eat your popcorn, and pay attention to what’s going on in this intelligent, visually dazzling and often creepy film about the wonders and dangers and uncertainties of science.

Because of where the plot eventually turns, I’m fine with calling this a mad-scientist movie. But despite the decisions made by Will Caster, decisions that might be heading things toward the grimness at the beginning, there’s plenty of madness spinning around him. One of my favorite components of the script is the idea that it’s difficult to figure out who’s right or wrong, who’s bad or good. Would a genius, once hooked up to the limitless possibilities of the Internet – literally a human in a machine – work for the betterment or detriment of mankind?

Page 2 of 2 - It’s also pretty cool to have these sorts of philosophical discussions sharing screen time with high-octane explosions.

Which brings me back to “visually dazzling.” This is a first shot at directing for veteran cinematographer Wally Pfister (“The Dark Knight,” “Inception”), and he’s a double winner here. The look of the film, no surprise, is amazing, and since a cinematographer works in such tight quarters with actors and directors, Pfister has made great use of his experience. He’s gotten some terrific performances from his actors, and though the story gets complicated, he’s figured out how to tell it well.

The final couple of minutes of the film are going to lead to discussions among viewers as to whether it’s an upbeat or downbeat ending. I won’t let on as to which side I’m on, but you can be sure that it led to a few good-natured arguments.